At the Intersection
of Global Business,
Public Policy, and
Law: ASU in DC
Midcareer professionals seeking a global focus for
their résumés now have three Arizona State University
(ASU) master’s degree programs to choose from that
are entirely based in Washington, DC. By combining
the elite faculty and expertise of ASU’s Thunderbird
School of Global Management, Sandra Day O’Connor
College of Law, Watts College of Public Service and
Community Solutions, and the McCain Institute for
International Leadership, ASU is able to offer students
a curriculum uniquely suited for a new generation of
leaders—those who can and must face today’s most
pressing global challenges.What graduate degree programs does ASU have in
Washington, DC?
The university is now accepting students into its fi rst
graduate degree programs based entirely at ASU’s
Ambassador Barbara Barrett and Justice Sandra Day
O’Connor Washington Center, located just two blocks
from the White House.
Starting in January 2020, the Thunderbird School
of Global Management will offer an Executive Master
of Arts degree in Global Affairs and Management.
Washington-area professionals will be able to boost
their marketability by choosing from three pathways:
global business, taught by Thunderbird faculty; inter-
national law, taught by faculty from the Sandra Day
O’Connor College of Law, and global policy, taught in
collaboration with Watts College faculty.
For more than seventy years, Thunderbird has been
the vanguard of global management and leadership
education. Home to the world’s No. 1-ranked master’sdegree in global management, according to the Wall
Street Journal in 2019, Thunderbird produces unique
leaders capable of tackling the world’s greatest challenges.
Ranked nationally in the top 5 percent by U.S.
News & World Report, the ASU School of Public
Affairs, which is part of Watts College, now offers
an Executive Master of Public Administration (MPA)
degree created for public sector and public policy
managers. The nineteen-month program, offered in
collaboration with the McCain Institute, combines an
online curriculum with three-day executive sessions in
Washington, DC, designed to expand the breadth and
depth of students’ professional networks. Executive
MPA students are selected based on their ability to
demonstrate the value they would add to the learning
experience of the entire class.
Finally, the Master of Arts in International Affairs
and Leadership degree, offered by the ASU School of
Politics and Global Studies and the McCain Institute,
prepares students for international leadership roles in
a dynamic active learning environment led by senior
international affairs professionals from the public and
private sectors. Drawing on the legacy of the values-
driven leadership embodied by Senator John McCain,
the McCain Institute’s access and connectivity in
the international community, and ASU’s extensive
academic capacity, students will acquire a distinctive
edge to succeed in the full spectrum of international
affairs professions.What’s the ASU-in-DC di erence?
Many universities have a presence in Washington, DC,
either through a lobbyist, an internship coordinator,
or a few folks who hand out swag and try to wrangle
money out of federal agencies.
But Arizona State University is a presence in
Washington, DC, a place where top researchers share
their insights with leaders who create policy and serve
as catalysts for tangible change in an environment
that is often synonymous with partisan dysfunction.STEFANIE LINDQUIST
Deputy Provost and Vice President for Academic A airs
Professor of Law and Political Science
Arizona State University10 washingtondc.asu.edu | [email protected]
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